Design and Construction

of Shaft
Zubair Nizamani
2015250284

Outline
Introduction
Locating Shaft
Designing of Shaft
Construction Methods
Excavation Method
Soft and Wet Ground
Excavation
Pump Chamber
Summary

Introduction
Shafts are the doorways to the underground
Most of the shafts for tunnel construction are very shallow
compared to mine shafts.
Many of the civil shafts may be in the range of 100 ft, but It
would be classified a shallow shaft as less than 300 ft.
They also, on some occasions may be quiet a lot larger, say
50 to 75 ft in diameter.
The man conveyance is just a crane with an attached
bucket,

More of the civil shafts

seem to be sunk in very
soft ground, very wet
ground or even through
a body of water, which
brings about entirely

There are generally two ways to access the tunnel level for
construction: through a portal providing direct access at the
surface or through a shaft providing vertical access to the level of
tunnel operations.
Usually when the tunneling is in a rural setting, a portal/decline is
the best solution, if the tunnel is under about 700 -800 ft. But,
since urban land is valuable and interference with existing services
must be minimized, most tunnels built through urban areas require
shafts to reach the working area and to provide for removal of
tunnel muck.

Tunnel shafts can be temporary or permanent:

temporary shafts are for the contractor's use during construction

(temporary shafts normally are backfilled at the end of
construction);

permanent shafts may be used by the contractor during

construction, but will become an integral part of the tunnel
structure. Permanent shafts can be used for ventilation, large
pumping or water transfer, sewage outfall disposal, utility lines or

Locating a Shaft
The location of shafts is critical in planning
efficient construction. Locating a shaft at the
midpoint of a tunnel will permit tunnel driving
in two directions; also, a single compressor
plant, hoist, shop, and office can serve both
headings. But there may be overriding space
limitations, which will dictate locating a shaft
near vacant land that will facilitate the
erection of temporary buildings. The proximity
of muck disposal locations and routes should
also be considered.

Designing Of Shaft
When designing a shaft, these four key questions
dictate:

Where is the groundwater table?

What type of ground will be excavated?
How much working space is needed?
How deep is the tunnel horizon?

The answers to these questions determine which

shaft construction methods are feasible and best to
use on your project.

 Before determining your shaft construction method,

decide your minimum shaft size.
During design, the minimum dimensions are typically
determined by the physical layout of the final structure
to be constructed or space needed for launching a
tunnel boring machine (TBM).
For water and wastewater tunnels, final structures will
include drop shafts, access shafts, pump stations, gate
valves and surge chambers.
For transit tunnels, shafts can be used for access,
elevators, ventilation, transit stations and utility drops.
It is difficult to determine exactly what size shaft the
contractor will need because you will not know the
proposed means and methods and the exact
equipment that will be used.
When surface space allows, assume the contractor
may need to increase the footprint of the shaft.

The big design question is: Can the shaft be circular? A circular shaft is
structurally stable. The earth loads on a circular shaft place the shaft
support in ring compression. The benefit of a circular shaft is that the
reinforcement in the structural elements can be reduced and the need for
internal support is eliminated.

Construction Method
Timber Sheet and
Piling
Timber piling is
inexpensive and, once
installed, very easy to
work with
The method can be
economical to start
excavating in soft material,
not deeper than about 20
ft of soil overlying rock.

 Steel Sheet Piling

Interlocking steel sheet piles, rather
than timber sheet piles are commonly
used to brace soft, water-bearing ground
if the excavation exceeds about 20 ft.
Excavation usually begins after the piledriving operation is completed, unless
the shaft is unusually deep.

 Soldier Piles and Laggings

Steel "H" piles, called soldier piles, usually
spaced from 6 to 10 ft apart, are driven to
the required depth.
As the excavation proceeds, horizontal timber
lagging, usually 3 or 4-in. hardwood, is
placed against the face of the excavation and
wedged between the flanges of the "H" piles.

 Liner Plates
The main advantage
of liner plates is that
their small size
permits ease of
operation in limited
working spaces, and it
is not necessary to
have special
equipment to lift or
place the liner plates.

 Slurry Walls
Slurry walls are a series of excavated
panels. A panel is excavated and
remains stable and open with the use of
slurry.
After panel verticality is checked, a
reinforcement cage is lowered into the
excavated panel/slot.
The slurry is displaced with tremie
concrete and allowed to harden. Primary
panels are installed first.

Soldier Piles
and
Laggings

Slurry

Excavation Methods
Conventional drill, blast & remove stone("muck
out") to surface with a winder. If the shaft is to be
"lined" (i.e. sides to be covered with a concrete or
even a steel lining), this is normally placed as the
shaft is excavated.

 Raise boring a pilot hole is drilled

first and in this case reamed out to
the full shaft diameter by a large
reaming bit pulled upwards from the
bottom of the shaft.

 Drilling Blind
Shafts with
V Moles
The V mole is
a horizontal
TBM modified
for shaft
boring.

 Shaft Boring Machine (SBM)

Safe and quick construction of blind
shafts down to depths of 2,000 meters.

 Sinking Shallow Shafts in Soft Ground

Shafts in (shallow) soft ground are normally excavated
with a crane using a clamshell bucket to hoist the muck
from the shaft and drop it into a hopper or a stockpile or
directly into a truck on the surface.
In other cases, a cactus grab type clamshell may be
used or the muck may be placed in a bucket and hoisted
with a crane or even a bridge crane.

Pump Chamber and Sump

Water can enter the shaft from minor
leaks, rain or launching of the TBM.
Once the shaft has been excavated
to grade, a pump chamber and a
sump may be excavated if required.
A project can be down weeks or
months if a shaft and tunnel are
allowed to flood.

Shaft Excavation in Soft, Wet

Ground

Lowering of Groundwater
Open Pumping
Wellpoint System
Deep Wells
Freezing
Caissons

Summary
Many different shaft construction
methods are available. The key to
deciding on a method is determining
if there is a groundwater table
presence.
Also, see if you can design your shaft
with a circular shape to minimize or
eliminate the need for wall
reinforcement and internal bracing.

Reference
https
://www.herrenknecht.com/en/products
/core-products/mining/shaft-boringmachine-sbm.html
Mechanical Excavation in Civil and
Mining Industries
Wikipedia

Thank You